To be honest, it was more of a stake - in - the - sand kind of goal rather than a well thought out date based on pure math. (humblefi.com)
It may be true for modern physics; but most branches of pure math require a trivially insignificant amount of money (basically, a living stipend for a couple hundred mathematicians who are great enough that you don't want to waste their time on teaching - for - a-living; some office supplies; and if you're really forward thinking, a larger one - time outlay for a fund whose interest pays for prestige prizes ala Fields Prize). (politics.stackexchange.com)
If you're going for pure math, the best way to pay off your debts would be to start with the one with the highest interest rate, since that will save you the most interest per dollar that you pay back. (thesimpledollar.com)